The Violent Storm
by NotLaura
Summary: Sometimes the wheather can be an indicator of people's hearts. (KenYako, with Takari and Sorato)


Wow, Laura actually finished something she SAID she was going to write. All are shocked ^_^ Actually, this is the KenYako I've been working on since, like, June. I finally got off my lazy bottom and finished it!  
  
I -really- like how this turned out, I think it's one of my favourites so far. The ending's kinda cheesy, but still... I love reviews, good bad or indifferent. so please leave reviews!  
  
Also, about Twelve Months, I'm just waiting to hear from my beta-reader on the next chapter.  
  
Like I said, PLEASE review this. I'll be SUPREMELY grateful! ^_^  
  
Disclaimer: I don't own 'em.  
  
  
  
THE VIOLENT STORM  
  
By: Laura  
  
The rain... Yolei had always liked the sound of rain falling against her window. But not this night... this night it wasn't the soft pitter-patter of steadily falling raindrops... this night it was the pounding of a torrential downpour that met her tired ears. She sat there, in front of her window, her pajama-clad body wrapped tightly in a navy blue blanket. Poromon was nestled happily underneath the blanket, in her lap, yet Yolei found no contentment from the warmth her Digimon provided.  
  
But, it wasn't really a night for contentment at all.  
  
Everything that had made sense to her only hours before seemed confusing and complicated now. Yolei's entire world, her entire being had been turned upside down and shaken repeatedly in the period of thirty minutes.  
  
It had started in the park.  
  
The sounds of the approaching storm had cut short the little get together between herself, Kari, TK, Cody, Davis, and Ken. It was already dusk, and nobody really wanted to be outside after dark in a thunderstorm. She was headed with Cody towards their apartment when the raindrops had started. It was then that Yolei realized she had no key to her apartment. Glancing at her best friend, she told him to hurry home -she'd run to her family's' store first and get a key from her father.  
  
Cody had nodded and run off towards his apartment, leaving Yolei in the steadily increasing rainfall. Wishing she had brought an umbrella she hurried down the familiar streets before bursting into the convenience store. She got a key, a bottle of water, and kissed her father goodbye, before heading out into the storm once more. The rain hadn't lessened at all, and the thunder was getting more frequent with each step Yolei ran. She jumped in shock as lightning illuminated everything around her.  
  
"Yolei?" The familiar voice made her turn around and squint through the curtain of water.  
  
"Ken?" Sure enough, The boy genius was ten feet away from her, standing inside a bus shelter, awaiting the bus to take him home.  
  
"You're shivering." He commented, when she joined him under the protection of the bus shelter. Before Yolei had time to protest, he slipped off his jacket and placed it around her shoulders.  
  
She had smiled slightly, thankful for his kindness. "I guess I am..." she yelped when there was another crack of lightning.  
  
"You shouldn't be out here in this storm." His tone was straightforward. "Why don't I walk you back to your apartment, the buses are never on time in good whether... it's sure to be late tonight."  
  
"You don't have to."  
  
"Doesn't mean I won't."  
  
She had smiled again, remembering an exclamation she had made years ago. 'Yolei Ichijouji! Yolei and Ken Ichijouji!' Laughing slightly, she reached for Ken's hand. "Alright then. Just follow me."  
  
The ran through the dark stormy streets of Odaiba towards Yolei's apartment building, holding hands. It had seemed somehow natural to Yolei... at the time she had thought nothing of it, she and Ken were friends, and friends were allowed to enjoy each other's presence.  
  
Ken had tried to avoid the rapidly forming puddles, but for every one that he dodged, Yolei stomped in six others, covering them both in mud and water. He had smiled at her, one of his rare smiles, and not knowing how to respond, Yolei had stomped in another puddle.  
  
Laughing, the pair were soon right outside of Yolei's apartment. Digging out the key her father had given her she had asked Ken inside, just to wait out the storm.  
  
He had agreed, and followed her into the small apartment. Her siblings were all out, her mother was visiting her Aunt, and her father was working in the store, so the two of them were alone, the sounds of thunder and rain outside.  
  
After having changed into her pajamas, Yolei soon found herself seated on her couch, watching cartoons with Ken. In one commercial break, she snuck a look at him. "Thank you for walking home with me, Ken."  
  
Ken looked at her, his eyes seeming to probe her for some reason. "No need to thank me." He said simply, turning to look out the window. "The rain doesn't seem to be letting up much." He frowned.  
  
Yolei ran a hand through her damp hair. "No, it doesn't." She said lamely, taking off her glasses to wipe them.  
  
"You look beautiful with your glasses off."  
  
Yolei's head had snapped up, not really believing the words that had come out of his mouth. Looking back, she realized her must have thought she was horrified, because Ken had quickly gotten up. "I should head home." He had mumbled, grabbing his jacket from where she had left it, and before Yolei was off the couch he was out the door and gone.  
  
She found herself now, sitting by the window, watching the storm, her hair had completely dried an hour ago, yet she didn't feel that sleep was on her agenda.  
  
You look beautiful with you glasses off.  
  
She had developed a crush on Ken's image before she had even met him... and that had faded into contempt when his identity as the Digimon Emperor had been revealed... and that had bloomed into respect and friendship once he was on their side... was it that implausible for it to mature into something more?  
  
Yolei rested her head against her arms, watching the rain. Such thoughts wouldn't get her anywhere, he probably didn't mean anything but what he had said... at least, that's what she told herself as she watched the storm outside.  
  
------------------------  
  
It was late when Ken returned to the Ichijouji residence, soaked to the bone from the storm outside. His mother had handed him a cup of hot chocolate to warm him up, and ushered him into a warm bath.  
  
He let the water soak over him, and leaned his head against the back of the bathtub. "What was I thinking?" he muttered, submerging his head under the water for a moment, to wash the remains of mud out of it. He remembered the playful look on Yolei's face as she had jumped in puddles, pulling him along by his hand. There was something about that girl, something that made him want to smile and laugh and play... something that made him feel... normal.  
  
And he had probably ruined it all.  
  
The shocked look on her face had said enough, Ken didn't need to ask questions. She had entranced him with her laughter, mesmerized him with her smile, and captured his heart with her innocence. Ken never did anything halfheartedly, and falling in love had been no different. He had fallen completely, utterly, and totally in love with Yolei Inoue.  
  
It was an unrequited love.  
  
He could live without her love, had always known he would have to, who could love him? But if he had lost her friendship, he wouldn't be able to stand that.  
  
Why he had opened his mouth was a mystery. Everything was thought through in Ken's life, no impulsive decisions, they resulted in loss of control, and Ken needed control... Yet for some reason, sitting on her couch, watching cartoons, all his inhibitions had left him and he had murmured something that should've remained silent within the confines of his heart.  
  
You look beautiful with your glasses off.  
  
Ken sighed, and drained his bath before pulling his pajamas on. He pulled himself up into bed, and turned onto his side, staring out the window at the raging storm outside.  
  
------------------------  
  
Yolei's eyes snapped open and she sat up quickly, groaning at the pain in her back. She had fallen asleep in front of her window... Glancing outside, she saw that the storm was still raging outside. Sighing, she closed her eyes once more.  
  
Then the phone rang.  
  
Glancing at the clock, Yolei realized that it had only been two hours since Ken had left, only 10 PM. She snatched the phone up. "Hello? Inoue Residence, Yolei speaking."  
  
"Hey Yolei, it's Kari!"  
  
"Hey Kari." Yolei climbed back up to her window.  
  
"I have the most wonderful, amazing, spectacular news!" Kari exclaimed.  
  
"Davis got the crap pounded out of him by TK, who was finally sick and tired of getting called every other combination of letters except TK?"  
  
Kari giggled slightly. "No, silly! TK kissed me!"  
  
Yolei squealed. "No way! That's amazing! What happened? How was it? Is he a good kisser?"  
  
"Yeah... Not that I really have anything to base that opinion on, oh Yolei, it was wonderful!" Kari talked excitedly, telling the story of her first kiss. "Who could've known such a violent storm would bring out the romantic side of him?" She finished.  
  
"Storms do that to people... make them act strangely."  
  
Kari paused for a moment. "Yolei, what is it you're not telling me?"  
  
"Ken walked me home."  
  
"And that's a bad thing?"  
  
"And then we watched cartoons together."  
  
"Still not seeing the problem here..."  
  
"And he said I looked beautiful with my glasses off."  
  
It was Kari's turn to squeal happily. "Yolei! That's great!"  
  
"No, not really." Yolei moped. "I froze, and I think he got mad, and he left before I could say anything. He must hate me."  
  
"I'm sure he doesn't hate you."  
  
"No you're not." The violet haired Digidestined accused. "You always say the nice thing so people don't feel bad. My hair could resemble Gomamon's and you'd still tell me it looked great. How am I supposed to get advice from you if you're afraid to be mean?!"  
  
On the other end of the phone line, Kari blinked.  
  
"I'm sorry, you didn't do anything to deserve that." Yolei sighed. "I'm just so confused. did he mean he likes me? Or was he just commenting casually?"  
  
"Based on the fact that he left when you didn't react, I'm guessing he likes you."  
  
"But how can I find out for sure?"  
  
Kari thought for a moment. "Yolei, what do you feel for him?"  
  
"I... I don't know."  
  
"Do you love him?"  
  
"NO! Well, yeah... maybe. Okay, I think I do."  
  
Kari smiled knowingly.  
  
------------------------  
  
Ken punched his pillow, and thunder cracked outside. He was getting nowhere, his thoughts were jumbling together. He needed to talk to someone, but who?  
  
He supposed he could call Davis, if he had a best friend, the begoggled boy had to be it. Thinking for a moment, Ken discarded that idea.  
  
TK? No, he wasn't sure that was the best person to go to for love advice. The poor boy was head over heels in love with Kari, and still hadn't said a word.  
  
Kari... Maybe he should call her. She and Yolei were friends. He looked at the clock, it was only 10:30 PM. Was it too late to call her? Probably not... if she was sleeping Tai would still answer...  
  
Taking a deep breath, Ken picked up his phone and began to dial the Kamiya's home.  
  
"Hello? Kamiya residence, Tai speaking."  
  
"Tai, this is Ken. May I please speak to Kari?"  
  
"One minute." Ken could hear his cry of "KARI! TELEPHONE!" muffled by his hand, and then some mumbling about Kari always being on the phone.  
  
"Hello? Kari speaking..."  
  
"Um... Kari, this is Ken."  
  
"Ken! What do you feel for Yolei?"  
  
Ken blinked. I guess she already talked to Yolei... "Um, I don't know?" It came out more as a question than a statement.  
  
He couldn't sworn he heard Kari mutter something to the extent of 'People shouldn't hide their feelings...' "Well, until you figure that out, I suggest you don't tell a girl she's beautiful. Especially not one who's now crying in her room because she thinks you hate her."  
  
With that, Kari hung up the phone.  
  
Ken stared blankly at the receiver in his hand. Kari just hung up at him. Kari just got cross with him. KARI. The ever calm, ever understanding, Hikari Kamiya. This was certainly something new.  
  
"She's certainly one to talk about hiding feelings" He said bitterly. So Yolei was crying. It could mean lots of things. Maybe she was crying with revulsion? Unconsciously, Ken was determined to make things look as bad as possible.  
  
He leaned his head against the window to watch the storm raging outside.  
  
Moments later, his telephone rang.  
  
"Hello? Ichijouji residence, Ken speaking."  
  
"TL KISSED MY GIRL!"  
  
Ken held the phone slightly away from his ear. "What, Davis?" He asked, as politely as he possibly could.  
  
"Jun was coming home, and she saw TP kiss Kari!"  
  
That explains Kari's muttering... "TK is in love with her, Davis. And she's in love with him. It just took them a while to admit that."  
  
"I know, I know." At least Davis was speaking with a normal volume now. "It doesn't mean It doesn't hurt, though."  
  
"You want her to be happy, don't you?"  
  
"Of course. And if TQ can make her happy, then I'm not going to do anything. Well, nothing except act really pissed off, they expect it of me."  
  
Ken smiled, at least Davis was growing up, even if it was only slightly.  
  
"Actually, that's not the only reason I called."  
  
Ken's heart sank. How could Davis possibly know already?  
  
"I just got off the phone with Cody, who got off the phone with Yolei... apparently she's really upset over something that someone did."  
  
Ken just grunted softly.  
  
"See, the thing is Ken. As much as you and I are friends, Yolei's my friend too. And I've got to protect her, you know?"  
  
Ken didn't like where this was going.  
  
"So, you either make her happy again, or the next time I see you, I'm going to have to kick your ass."  
  
As much as Ken knew he could beat Davis in a fight, he really didn't want to deal with him when he was angry.  
  
"I don't like being mad at people, Ken. But I don't like to see my friends sad."  
  
"I know you don't Davis. You're a great friend." Ken sighed. "Do you think I should call her and straighten this out?"  
  
"No."  
  
"Huh? But you just said-"  
  
"I think you should get your soccer-playing ass over to her house, maybe bring her some flowers, and tell her how you feel because it's written all over your face."  
  
"But-"  
  
"No buts, Ken. You may be the smart one, but you have NO clue when it comes to girls."  
  
"And you do?"  
  
"Shut up. We're not talking about me." Davis was starting to get angry. "I don't want Yolei crying, and I really don't want to fight you, if only because I know you can kick my ass, so get down to Odaiba and bring her flowers." He hung up the phone.  
  
"How am I supposed to get flowers at 11 PM?" Ken asked.  
  
------------------------  
  
"Matt!" Sora giggled and gently pushed him away. "I need to finish closing the store! It's past midnight!"  
  
Matt pouted and grinned. "But I haven't seen my girlfriend all day long!" He joked, reaching for her again. "The store can wait a little longer."  
  
Sora smiled and wrapped her arms around his neck. "I suppose it can..."  
  
"That's my girl..." Matt whispered, brushing his lips across hers.  
  
Then there was a knock at the door to the store.  
  
When Sora started pulling away, Mat held her closer and yelled out. "We're closed!"  
  
The knocking persisted.  
  
"Matt, I really should answer that... what if someone tells my mother?"  
  
He pouted and released her again. "Fine."  
  
Sora peered through the small window on the door to her mother's flower shop and blinked. "Ken?" She asked confused, once she had let him in. He was completely soaked, and looking slightly frantic. Matt joined her at the doorway and they both stared at him for a moment.  
  
"What brings you here, Ken?" Matt asked.  
  
"You mean you don't know? Probably the only ones who haven't been told..." He shook his head, as if ridding himself of the bitterness. "I need your help Sora."  
  
"With what?"  
  
"Um..." Ken turned pink. "I kind of need some flowers..."  
  
Matt's eyebrows rose. "Got a special girl?" He asked, jokingly.  
  
"NO! Well, I mean... Maybe... not yet."  
  
"Just one second!" Sora disappeared into the back of the store, and returned a moment later with three roses. "These are Yolei's favourite." She smiled knowingly.  
  
Ken turned even redder. "I never said..."  
  
"You didn't have to. Now hurry to her house, and try not to get those wet."  
  
------------------------  
  
The storm was still raging outside, and it was really starting to get on Yolei's nerves. I was nearly 1 AM, and she couldn't sleep at all. She had called everyone she could think of, for advice. Even dialing the number of Sora's mom's flower shop.  
  
Sora had been conspicuously silent on advice, and Yolei could've sworn she heard Matt snickering in the background.  
  
TK had been slightly too elated at his newfound relationship with Kari to provide any coherent advice, Cody was really too young to understand, She had tried calling Davis, but ending up getting her ear talked off by Jun. She had woken Joe up, and he really hadn't been in the mood to provide advice. Izzy was just as baffled by matters of the heart as she was, and Mimi was still in America.  
  
Stepping into her slippers, Yolei headed out to the small kitchen to make herself a snack. None of her family had come home yet, so she turned on the lights as she went.  
  
She hugged her arms around herself at a particularly loud crack of lightning. Pulling open the fridge door she began searching for some food to make. When she finally decided on a cheese sandwich she set out to put it together.  
  
Her thoughts weren't on the food she was making though, her thoughts were on Ken.  
  
You look beautiful with your glasses off.  
  
Had he really meant it? Yolei always thought of herself as cute, sometimes pretty, but never beautiful.  
  
"I'm such a fool." She muttered while slicing bread. "On the slim chance he did mean it, I ruined any chances I had by just staring open-mouthed at him like some kind of fish. He probably thinks I'm an idiot." She leaned her face against the counter for a moment, small tears making their way down her cheeks.  
  
"No, don't do this Yolei. Don't cry over it again..." She tried to talk herself out of the sobs she could feel coming. Outside the rain poured against her apartment building, just as the tears poured from her eyes.  
  
I'm such a fool..." She repeated, shaking slightly.  
  
Then her doorbell rang. Standing quickly, and knocking over the bread board, Yolei made no effort to clean her face. "It's probably just my brother, forgetting his key as usual..."  
  
Sighing, she pulled the door open, ready to scold.  
  
And she found herself staring at Ken. If he had been soaked when Sora saw him, he was a drowned rat now. He was staring at his shoes.  
  
"K-Ken!" she exclaimed, suddenly conscious of the fact she looked awful.  
  
"Here." He said softly, thrusting a few roses at her from inside his coat. They were slightly crumpled, but otherwise fine.  
  
Confused, Yolei took the flowers from his outstretched hand and stared at them. "I-I'm sorry, Ken." She whispered. "You must hate me..."  
  
He shook his head, still staring at his shoes. "I'm the one who should be sorry, I didn't mean to run out on you like that."  
  
"I-"  
  
"Can I tell you something?" He asked quietly, finally raising his eyes to hers.  
  
Yolei nodded.  
  
"What I said came out wrong." Yolei's heart fell. "You don't just look beautiful without your glasses, you always look beautiful."  
  
Once again, Yolei found herself staring openmouthed at him.  
  
"And," Ken continued. "You'll probably think this is dumb, but I just wanted to say that I like you... That sounds stupid." He muttered, more to himself. "I mean, I care about you... Still stupid..." Yolei couldn't help but smile slightly as he stammered his way through what he was trying to tell her. "What I really mean is, I love you."  
  
Ken blinked, he hadn't meant to say quite that much. And now, Yolei was staring at him with her mouth open yet again. "I don't expect you to feel anything for me, but I had to get it out." His gaze dropped to the floor once more. "I'm sorry for bothering you at this hour in the morning, I should head home before my parents get too worried."  
  
"Ken?"  
  
He didn't say anything, just made an 'mmm' noise.  
  
"I love you too."  
  
His head snapped up, and now it was his turn to stare at her with his mouth hanging open. She was smiling at him, holding the flowers her gave her gently. Once her recovered, Ken took a step towards her, cautiously reaching her hand out towards her, then stopping, unsure.  
  
Yolei set the flowers aside and stepped towards him. "You know what still makes me mad about tonight, Ken?"  
  
He swallowed, was she still upset? "What's that?" He tried to keep his voice steady.  
  
"Kari got her first kiss tonight, and I didn't."  
  
"Then you can have two to make up for it." Ken smiled and leaned towards her, gently brushing their lips together.  
  
Outside, the rain had slowed to a drizzle, and the storm clouds were clearing. The light of the moon was breaking through as the last remnants of the violent storm left.  
  
Sometimes the whether can be an indicator of what a person is going though, or in this case, two people. As the storm in their hearts calmed, the storm raging outside disappeared as well.  
  
Leaving behind a peaceful calm.  
  
THE END  
  
  
  
Well? Love it? Hate it? Want to see it burned in hell? Be sure to review and let me know ^_^ I thrive on reviews!  
  
Ciao!  
  
-Laura 


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